Part 20 (1/2)
”It is Mr John Sh said in a low voice ”Shall I ask him to come up, Papa? He looks lonely out there all by himself”
”By all o quietly, my son, or Mamma will be out to knoho is there, and our concert will be over”
Hugh departed on his errand, returning in a few ure in his wake, which he led to one of the long cane chairs scattered about, and left to its own meditations
The children looked curiously at Mr John S oodHe sat very still, his eyes fixed on the starry sky before hieneral outline in the seuely fa io and refuse to be laid hold of
”But I _can't_ have seen him before,” she said to herself; ”it is quite iet to where she had been before Mr Smith came up--to that fairyland which the ic wand, especially perhaps for those who lovelittle impression disturbed her like an i out into the night and carried theates of Heaven
The sound of the piano closing brought them back to earth The musicians stepped out on to the balcony
”_Ende vohted roo too, forhome--hullo, Smith! Where did you co you to Professor and Mrs Caht hi and was fascinated like flies and hed as Mr Shter ”You ain,” Mamma said, ”and ill have a concert properly prepared for you And you will give me all the news from home,” she added, with the wistful note that was so often in her voice, ”unless you will co man could not stay, and, after a few ain at the earliest possible opportunity, he went off with Mr von Greusen
”Who _is_ Mr Smith?” Mollie asked, as they moved bedwards ”Doesn't anybody knoho he is?”
”He is a young h for Papa and Mah answered, with a yawn ”What does itas he is a nice chap”
”But suppose he was a bushranger in disguise and--”
”Suppose he is Nebuchadnezzar, King of the Jews,” Hugh interrupted, with another yawn ”I'ht, with that cool wind Thank goodness”
Nextroad which led up to the vineyards For three-quarters of the way it ran through the woods of yesterday; then they left the woods behind and eed on to a bare and shadeless track on the hill-side, and ten ate of the vineyard Mr von Greusen had given thelish children had never seen a vineyard in their lives, and their expectations were inclined to be roe bunches of thin-skinned, bloo like a pergola, was the picture they had forrowing in the cherry garden, but they had been so surrounded by cherry trees and other exciting objects that they had not left any great i Here were acres of straight green lines hardly higher than gooseberry-bushes, and without a single tree to break the rapes looked inviting enough, hanging a their decorative leaves and tendrils, but they had not been thinned and consequently were srapes, while exposure to wind and dust had removed most of their bloom; but, in spite of their comparatively homely appearance, the children soon found that the fruit tasted sweet and luscious as only freshly gathered, sun-ripened fruit can do
”This is Mr von Greusen's experirows different lots for different wines, but here he has all sorts We like these Ladies' Fingers; they go off in your mouth with such a nice squelch”
”What happens if you eat his favourite experih a bunch of long, slender grapes of a translucent pale-green colour
”He says, '_Donnerwetter_! What see I?'” Hugh answered; ”but he ties a red worsted round his first-class experirapes up except the bunch he took home”
Now that the children were in the vineyard, and heard Hugh talking learnedly of Black Portugals, Verdeilho, shi+rez, and other strange- sounding narape, which _ested, either Gordello or Campdonne
”It has to have a winey sound, you see,” he said, ”or it wouldn't sell I think 'Gordello' sounds rather wellto satisfy their appetite for grapes The sun got hotter, their eyes ached with the glare, and they decided to return to the coolness of the woods and gardens lower down The boys wanted to go exploring; the girls were to be left to collect peaches and ht bear the honoured nane was put on theof the Fairy Dell by the ti Thus planned the boys
”Boys propose, girls dispose,” paraphrased Mollie, as the three pith helather a share of the Gordello-destined grapes and carry them part of the way towards the Dell ”If dick and Jerry want drinks they can jolly well co to have a rest”
Prue looked a little shocked, but Grizzel heartily agreed with Mollie ”I shall pull six peaches and one water-s ache, and I can't be bothered with Hugh and his old Gordello”
A short walk down the road between the guardens, where Mollie saw peaches that ance lacking in the grapes Large as apples, soft and downy as velvet, gloith criold, they were a perfect revelation of what peaches could be when they tried, and Mollie could hardly bear to wait till they reached the Fairy Dell before devouring one But Prudence was firrapes while you are hot and tired
Coht to the Dell and rest and eat peaches there If you ate theht die all of a sudden, and that would be _so_ aard for Grizzel and ht it would be ue